Gas Leak Causes Evacuation After Crash

August 02, 1989

HAMPTON — Fifteen to 20 Buckroe residents were evacuated from their homes for about four hours early Tuesday after a car struck a natural gas meter and line on the side of a home.

Police Officer Brian Devine said the accident happened about 1:20 a.m. when a 1976 Chevrolet Nova crashed through a fence alongside a duplex at 2033 E. Pembroke Ave. The car then struck the gas meter on the side of the duplex, rupturing the gas line, Devine said.

Lt. Glen Ziemba of the city Fire Department said the car made a hole about two feet in diameter on the side of the cement block and brick building.

He said Virginia Natural Gas was called because the location of the damage prevented firefighters from cutting off the gas.

They waited almost four hours until a VNG crew brought a backhoe to search for the shut-off valve.

Ziemba said the last residents returned to their homes about 5:30 a.m.

The driver of the car, Richard A. Bishop, 20, of the first block of Gumwood Drive in Hampton was treated at the scene of the accident for minor injuries.

He was charged with reckless driving and driving while intoxicated, Devine said.

Teresa Park, a tenant in the duplex hit by the car, said her brother was awakened by a "hissing noise" and when he went to investigate found several loose bricks and the car's headlight shining through a hole in the closet.

Within minutes, a strong gaseous odor filled the house, Park said, and she immediately dialed the 911 emergency operator.